R.I.P. drumming legend Sly Dunbar, 1952-2026

Sadly, legendary Jamaican drummer Sly Dunbar – who helped shape the sound of reggae – has passed away. He'll be greatly missed.

Happy Birthday Ernest Ranglin!

Celebrating the 93rd birthday of Jamaican guitar great Ernest Ranglin with a documentary, Paris performance from 2002 and more!

Ernest Ranglin career retrospective in the works

The Patriarch of Jamaican music is saying farewell to the road, to his fans...to those who don’t even know who he is. As the inventor ska and reggae music, Ernest Ranglin is arguably the most important and influential musician to emerge from Jamaica, and yet many people have not heard about him and his contributions. This project aims to change all of that— we're building a multimedia career retrospective boxed set that will celebrate his incredible life and musical legacy.

The Ernest Ranglin Legacy project is raising funds to assemble an unprecedented boxed set that will include remastered music, unreleased studio recordings from the archives, and all-new recordings and remixes, plus a detailed scrapbook, video collection, and more.

This multimedia package will take you on the journey through an incredibly fertile period of Jamaican music up to the present day. Find out more about the Ernest Ranglin Legacy project via Kickstarter right here. 

Watch the trailer video along with a documentary and various performance clips and recordings below. 

 

LINKS 

Read a feature on Ernest Ranglin which I wrote for a Toronto paper back in 2007 right here 

Canadian reggae enigma R. Man Prince is getting two rare 45s reissued

"Funny Dream" & "Everyone Has Got To Go" by Prince Robinson are being reissued by Toronto's Shella Records in March.

Here's the scoop from Shella Records...

It's been hard keeping a lid on these but I'm thrilled to announce two dream reissues from Jamaican Canadian enigma Prince Robinson A.K.A. "R. Man Prince" - Everyone Has Got To Go" and "Funny Dream", a 45 so scarce it has spawned its own mythology among collectors. 

Fully licensed for the first time from Prince, both 45s feature extended vocal mixes straight from the mastertapes and a couple of insanely heavy dubs from Ernest Hookim and Barnabas at Channel One circa 1976.

Read the back story (below) behind what inspired Prince to record these edgy, apocalyptic roots steppers and why so few copies of "Funny Dream" were ever in circulation. The lost polaroid in the first slide, unearthed by artist Zun Lee was the key to unlocking the R.Man mystery. Special thanks to Prince, Jeanette and Angella Robinson, Brandon Hocura and Zun Lee. 

Shella Records' reissues of "Funny Dream" and "Everyone Has Got To Go" will be released in March but they're both now available for pre-order right here. 

R. Man Prince's Funny Dream

Funny Dream, an apocalyptic roots stepper from 1976 is a 45 so rare that it has developed its own mythology and folklore in the small circle of collectors who know of its existence. 

One rumour suggests that so few copies exist because Robinson’s Russian wife took all the records from Canada back across the iron curtain in the late 70s when they split up. Some suggested he had died. If you are lucky enough to find an original copy, it will set you back at least a month’s rent.

The truth behind  this song is perhaps stranger than fiction.

After years of searching for Prince, Chris from Shella Records saw an article about a lost polaroid from the early 70s of a dapper man holding a trumpet that was exhibited in artist Zun Lee’s exhibition of found photos about Black life in North America. 

Remarkably, the man in the photograph’s daughter, Jeanette, who happened to be visiting the gallery almost immediately spotted her father on the wall in an exhibit of over 500 polaroids of unknown family portraits. The man in the photo in question was called Prince Robinson but there was no mention that he was a singer. After contacting the journalist, Chris eventually spoke to Prince’s daughter who confirmed that her father was indeed the singer Prince Robinson aka R. Man Prince. He was very much alive, still in Canada and only 45 minutes north of Toronto in Pickering.

While the story of the Russian ex absconding with the 45s is not true, the truth is equally dramatic.  Almost all copies were destroyed shortly after they were pressed, tragically reduced to ashes inside an incinerator.

Prince would rather not get into specifics about the incident but offers:

“Somebody was angry and didn’t understand what they had.”

The fact that anyone has ever heard this track is a small miracle, as it never had a proper release. Recorded in Jamaica, it was pressed in Canada on Snowball Records as the follow up to the killer “Everyone Has Got To Go”. Only a handful were distributed in local Toronto shops and given to friends before the majority were obliterated. 

While Prince was a family man and always employed legally, he had some friends and acquaintances who were into a heavier lifestyle. Prince always dressed like a celebrity, rolling around Toronto in a nice car and outfitted in the latest fashions from New York, a man about town at sound system events, soul and reggae shows. He felt this made him a target from some of these more dangerous characters.

“If you’re rolling around people that’s hypocrites they smile in your face but all the time they wanna take your place” 

Funny Dream reflects his unease with this situation and is based on a real dream or as Prince sees it, a vision from God showing him another path. “God jus’ a show me say 'Yow, Step away from that crew, they don’t really love you. They’re just nice to you because..I drove a nice car, I took people anywhere they wanna go, I had a Lincoln continental, we’d pile up 8 guys and go the studio or the pressing plant, anywhere you wanna go.”

Luckily for all of us, Inside a now battered briefcase that he took to Jamaica in 1976, Prince has kept his mastertapes and promo photos in pristine condition, knowing that his music had value and biding his time. The new 45s Funny Dream and Everyone Has Got To Go feature extended mixes from the original mastertapes, backed by Sly and Robbie, recorded at Joe Gibbs studio and dubbed into oblivion by Ernest Hookim and Barnabas at Channel One.

Prince is a soul survivor, who has weathered the storms of life and  the music industry. He still performs on occasion as Prince Jahmerican and these days is much more of a soul R&B artist.  He is a dapper man in his 70s though he looks much younger, married to the daughter of a legendary Jamaican music producer. 

Prince’s daughter Jeanette feels like the interest in her father’s music close to 50 years later is “a little miracle.” 

Prince himself feels this reissue represents “a resurrection” It makes me feel great ‘coz you think you came and you passed... God is doing something in the background, I don’t know…but I’m letting it flow…”

Listen to R. Man Prince's "Everyone Has Got To Go" and "Funny Dream" below. 

The Sound of Rhythms & Resistance w/ Jay Douglas, Nana McLean @ TD Music Hall, Nov 4

Jay Douglas highlights a salute to Toronto's Caribbean music legacy at TD Music Hall (178 Victoria) on Saturday at 8 pm.

THE SOUND OF RHYTHMS & RESISTANCE

featuring: JAY DOUGLAS, NANA McLEAN, AMMOYE & KAiRO McLEAN

house band: THE HUMAN RIGHTS

with Rayzalution & DJ Chocolate

MC Carrie Mullings

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 4

at TD MUSIC HALL 

178 Victoria Street, Toronto

8pm doors

$30 (plus charges) advance. Get tickets from TD Music Hall here. 

The Sound of Rhythms and Resistance builds on the Toronto Music Experience’s acclaimed exhibition at Friars Music Museum (which was produced in association with the Downtown Yonge BIA) in celebrating the rich legacy of reggae in Toronto. Audiences will hear music from the originators who came here from Jamaica in the 1960s and 70s through to today's innovators. The evening will feature much-loved veteran artists Jay Douglas and Nana McLean and contemporary stars Ammoye (7-time JUNO nominee) and 2-time JUNO winner Kairo McLean, all backed by our house band, The Human Rights. The opening set will be by all-female band Rayzalution, with DJ Chocolate and MC Carrie Mullings.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Jay Douglas

Jay Douglas is a 3-time JUNO award nominee, music producer and bandleader of the Jay Douglas All-Star Band and performed in the first Caribana parade in 1967 as a member of The Cougars. He has performed at various festivals worldwide, including Rastafest in Toronto and the 4 Seasons Reggae Cruise in Atlanta, Georgia. He has worked with international reggae stars such as Beres Hammond, Freddie McGregor, Marcia Griffiths, Luciano, Ken Boothe, Leroy Sibbles, Sly Dunbar, General Trees, Ziggy Marley, Lynn Taitt and guitar great Ernest Ranglin. Jay played a crucial role in Light In The Attic's important Jamaica To Toronto anthology and their 2004 reissue of the classic Wayne McGhie & The Sounds Of Joy album. Jay has been involved in a great deal of community work including working with Councillor Josh Colle to establish Reggae Lane in Toronto. Listen to Jay's new Sly Dunbar-produced single, "The World Is Troubled" featuring Tasha T (below).

Nana McLean

Nana McLean recorded her debut single in 1977 at Studio One for legendary producer Clement Coxsone Dodd, with a rendition of the Everly Brothers' classic ‘Till I Kissed You’ (listen below). After four decades, she is still one of reggae music’s premier artists and proudly wears the crown as the Queen of Reggae in Canada. On any given day, you can find Nana still busy in the studio recording songs as she has been doing for many years. She still receives calls from many notable producers who want to capture her unique and sweet vocals and potent lyrics on their latest riddims. Popular music selectors still reach out for dubplates of some of her biggest hits.

Ammoye

Singing songs of love, life and justice, 7-time JUNO nomine Ammoye delivers a wholly unique future forward reggae sound that incorporates old-school rocksteady dancehall and dubstep, with gospel, soul and R&B. With her infectious voice and messages of empowerment, Jamaican-born Ammoye is a lightworker and self declared soul rebel. Ammoye’s newest 13-track album Water features a who’s who of the contemporary international reggae scene with production from Jamaica’s Tandra Lytes Jhagroo and Natural High, Toronto’s own DJ Agile and Danny Maestro, The Senior Allstars from Germany, Thomas Blondet from Brooklyn, Adian Hanson Donsome of NYC’s Donsome Records and the legendary Lord SassaFras.

Kairo McLean

Winner of two consecutive JUNO Awards at the age of 14, Kairo McLean was two years old he began to show an interest in music and by the time he was 3 he was already playing drums. At 5 he picked up the acoustic guitar and by 6 he was already singing and performing at festivals. To call this child a natural would be an understatement. Kairo is a true scholar of reggae music. He is deeply familiar with all the artists in the genre, past records, musicians, producers and sound systems, details that only the most studied connoisseur of reggae would know. When it comes to his own compositions, Kairo is as “old school” as it gets, drawing influence from Peter Tosh, Dennis Brown and Gregory Isaacs.

The Human Rights

Since they came together in 2007 around one of the Toronto reggae scene’s true lions, Friendlyness (Big Sugar, Culture Shock, Truth And Rights), The Human Rights have become one of the most beloved and respected Canadian independent reggae bands. In 2014, our longtime bredren Tréson joined the band to give them a uniquely powerful two-man vocal front line that delivers roots reggae, soul, R&B and dancehall vibes. They have played over 200 club and festival shows across Canada, and earlier this year toured the United States for the first time; and will be playing at the New Orleans Reggae Festival this October.

Rayzalution

This all-female reggae band draws influences from greats such as Bob Marley, Marcia Griffiths, Third World, Morgan Heritage, Chronixx & Zinc Fence Band, Beres Hammond, Buju Banton, Destiny’s Child, and En Vouge. With powerful vocals they combine heavenly harmonies with exceptional musicianship and dynamic performances, the band promotes positivity and spreads a conscious message while still having a good time entertaining the audience. The band has shared the stage with international reggae acts such as: Maxi Priest, Freddie McGregor, Baby Cham, Shanchez, Romain Virgo, Dexta Daps, Mikey Spice, Beenie-Man, I-Wayne, Razor B, Marcia Griffiths, Lady G, Sister Nancy and the Mighty Diamonds to name a few.

DJ Chocolate

Whether it’s playing music, working as a lawyer, furthering this business of music with her two

companies or at the controls and decks of her radio show, DJ Chocolate never sleeps! Chocolate has been sharing the vibes on stage and on radio and at parties and concerts across North America for over thirty years alongside greats from the reggae and jungle world, including Burning Spear, Luciano, the second-generation Marleys, Sly & Robbie, Meta and the Cornerstones, Exco Levi and countless others. Most recently, she joined a well-known sound crew based in the US. Jamaica and Barbados called Hardcore International Music.

MC Carrie Mullings

Born into a musical family, Carrie Mullings was surrounded by the sounds of reggae music from an early age. Her father, the late Karl Winston Mullings, was a pioneer of the Jamaica to Toronto musical explosion and shared his gift with Carrie and her younger sister, Tanya. For over two decades, Carrie Mullings has been a force to be reckoned with in the Canadian music and media industries. She has contributed immensely to the growth and development of the Canadian reggae music infrastructure, bringing the genre into the forefront of worldwide recognition and reception. Celebrating her 20th year in radio broadcasting, Carrie continues to empower the community by sharing and uplifting through the airwaves.

 

Midweek Mixdown: Nat Birchall spins Glen Brown's Pantomine label

Sounds From The Ancient Archive selecta Nat Birchall plays 2hrs of Glen Brown's productions for the Pantomine label right here.  

John Oates shares reggae version of "Maneater" – as he first envisioned it!

John Oates originally came up with the idea for Hall & Oates' "Maneater" on a trip to Jamaica. Check out his new reggae version.

Here's the scoop...

May 19, 2023 –  John Oates (of the iconic pop-rock duo Daryl Hall & John Oates) is thrilled to release his re-imagination of the hit song “Maneater” as the reggae tune he always thought it could be. Oates originally came up with the chorus hook idea in the reggae style after coming back from a trip to Jamaica in the early 1980s. Last year, while appearing on the critically-acclaimed Questlove podcast, Oates told that story and an avalanche of listeners messaged in that they would love to hear that version. This overwhelming response lead Oates to reach out to his producer friend, Native Wayne Jobson who organized a recording session in Kingston, Jamaica assembling a veritable “who’s who” of legendary reggae musicians. The result is an amazing remake of this classic hit.

The credits include:

Producer - Native Wayne Jobson (No Doubt, Toots & the Maytals, Lee “Scratch” Perry)

Drums - Sly Dunbar (Peter Tosh, Jimmy Cliff, Bob Dylan)

Guitar - Chinna Smith (Bob Marley & the Wailers, Buju Banton)

Bass - Chris Meredith (Lauryn Hill, Burning Spear)

Keyboards - Robbie Lyn (Desmond Dekker, Peter Tosh, Missy Elliott)

Backing Vocals - Rome Ramirez (Sublime with Rome, Rome & Duddy)

Saxophone - Jim Hoke (Dolly Parton, Paul McCartney, Emmylou Harris)

Trumpet - Emmanuel Echem (Boyz II Men, Joss Stone, Kirk Franklin)

Oates says, “I tried to approach the reggae version of ‘Maneater' as if I was a new artist, as if I was not associated with Hall & Oates in any way. I wanted to see if I could reimagine it in a way that would make it fresh again and really work with the vibe of the players who were in that were in the studio in Jamaica.”

“Maneater” (Reggae Version) is the fifth release from his recent series of standalone singles including the Louis Armstrong cover “What A Wonderful World,” the Timmy Thomas cover  “Why Can't We Live Together,” and originals “Disconnected” and Pushin’ A Rock.”

In support of his new music Oates will be touring through out the year. Check the dates below. Watch John discuss the origins of "Maneater" with Questlove followed by a clip of the reggae version of "Maneater"

 

John Oates on Tour 

May 24 - Ann Arbor, MI - The Ark

May 25 - Waukegan, IL - Genesee Theatre

June 7 - Nashville, TN - Marty Stuart’s Late Night Jam at The Ryman Auditorium

July 14 - Boone, NC - The Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts

July 26 - Old Saybrook, CT - The Kate

July 27 - Old Saybrook, CT - The Kate

July 28 - Newport, RI - Newport Folk Festival

September 6 - Nashville, TN - Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

September 11 - Decatur, GA - Eddie’s Attic 

Happy Birthday Toots Hibbert!

Remembering reggae great Toots Hibbert on what would've been his 80th birthday with a 1975 Maytals performance at Winterland.  

R.I.P. Robbie Shakespeare, 1953-2021

Sadly, reggae bass boss and producer Robbie Shakespeare has passed away in Florida following kidney surgery. He was 68. 

R.I.P. Lee "Scratch" Perry, 1936-2021

Sadly, composer, arranger and studio magician Lee "Scratch" Perry has died at the age of 85. The Upsetter's music will live on.

LINKS

The Guardian Lee 'Scratch' Perry, visionary master of reggae, dies aged 85

Variety Reggae legend Lee 'Scratch' Perry dies at 85

UNCUT Magazine "People think I'm mad..." An Encounter with Lee 'Scratch' Perry

BBC 6 Music Lee 'Scratch' Perry upsets BBC Radio

Sonos Sound System Archive Radio Hour with Lee 'Scratch' Perry

Nat Birchall joins Vin Gordon for instrumental reggae set Upright Living

Nat Birchall's Upright Living – a follow-up to Sounds Almighty – is due Aug 28 but you can pre-order it now right here.

Nat Birchall meets Al Breadwinner - Upright Living

1. Man From Jones Town

2. Dub From Manchester

3. Upright Living 

4. Upfull Dubbing

5. Mystical Dawn

6. Wise Man Style/Dub Of The Prophet

7. African Village Dance

8. Village Dub

9. Tribute To The Great Tommy McCook

Credits:

Nat Birchall - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Bass, Melodica, Organ, Piano, Percussion, Hand Drums 

Al Breadwinner - Drums, Guitar, Organ, Piano, Percussion, Hand Drums 

Vin Gordon - Trombone 

David Fullwood - Trumpet 

Stally - Baritone Sax

Ted Bafaloukous tells the story behind his iconic reggae film Rockers

Rockers director Ted Bafaloukos' street-level account of filming in Kingston makes for a fascinating read.

Here's the scoop from Ginko Press...

Set amongst the reggae scene of late 70s Jamaica, the film Rockers achieved instant cult status among music and cinema fans. Rockers’ director, Ted Bafaloukos, has received many accolades for his work on the film, but the fact that he was also a fine writer and undercover photographer is often overlooked. In 2005, just before his death, Bafaloukos penned this vivid and never-before-published autobiography.

Beyond Bafaloukos’ fascinating story of the “making-of” Rockers, it tells the tale of a Greek immigrant from a family of sailors and his move to New York, eventually rubbing shoulders with the likes of The Velvet Underground, Robert Frank, Jessica Lange and Philippe “Man on Wire” Petit. But there’s a twist to this 1970s’ New York story: Bafaloukos fell in love with reggae when it was still just an underground facet of Jamaican culture in the City. His experiences in New York eventually led him to shoot Rockers, praised for the portrait it paints of Kingston’s late 70s music scene along with its unique style, mentality and fashion.

The director’s intense experiences in Jamaica and New York between ’75 – ’78 provide the substance of the scorching stories within, including; gunshots at his first ever reggae concert in Brooklyn, the director’s bizarre arrest for suspicion of being a CIA operative, paranoia at the Bob Marley compound, musicians-turned actors’ “rude boy” antics, and naturally, sympathetic, highly descriptive recollections of the music that first drew Bafaloukos into Jamaica’s music and culture.

An invaluable collection of photographs taken during the conception, writing and production of the film captures the zeitgeist and breathes life into the book. Production stills and photos taken during the era by Bafaloukos form the visual, cinematic backbone of the tome, faithfully rendering the amazing people, styles, and locations in living, breathing color. Taken all together, the text and images within Rockers will uncover new facets of this all-important era in Reggae music for even the most seasoned reggae aficionados. Beyond reggae circles, this new anthology offers an unparalleled snapshot of a highly fantasized and sought after je-ne sais-quoi: the all-time Jamaican cool. 

Watch a preview clip below. Get a copy of Rockers: The Making Of Reggae's Most Iconic Film from Ginko Press right here. 

Download Rub-A-Dub Style for free!

Toronto-based photographer and music journalist Beth Lesser has recently followed up her three excellent books Dancehall: The Rise of Jamaican Dancehall Culture, “The Legend of Sugar Minott & Youth Production,” and  King Jammy (co-authored with Steve Barrow) with a fourth historical perspective Rub-a-Dub Style: The Roots of Modern Dancehall.

Always on the cutting edge of contemporary culture, Lesser – who founded the important 80s zine Reggae Quarterly with her partner David Kingston aka Lord Selector, host of CKLN's Reggae Showcase program – is making her insightful new study of the largely misunderstood phase in modern reggae music's evolution available for free download on her site in advance of it's print publication. If the names Tenor Saw, Half Pint, Barrington Levy, Wayne Smith, Yellowman and/or Triston Palma mean anything to you, I'd suggest you stop reading this and check out Rub-A-Dub Style on the double, And pick up a back issue of Reggae Quarterly while you're at it.